Airplane Mission Preservation

LTV A-7 Corsair II Naval AircraftOn May 17, 1963, the U.S. Navy initiated a design competition for a light attack aircraft (VAL) which could replace the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk. Ling-Temco-Vought was named winner of the competition on February 11, 1964. A key factor in this company’s successful bid was use of the F-8 Crusader design with significant differences, the most telling being the shortened fuselage, less swept back wings, and no provision for varying the wind incidence. Over the production life of the aircraft, it has been internally modified and assigned dash numbers to reflect these changes. The A-7 was used extensively in the Vietnam Conflict and, toward the end of the war, provided the bulk of the Navy’s light attack effort flown from carriers. The A-7 completed its service with the Navy in “Operation Desert Storm”. The aircraft is on loan from the National Museum of Naval Aviation at Pensacola, Florida.